Le cheval du platrier 1821 - 1823

Editor: Here we have Théodore Géricault's "Le cheval du platrier," created between 1821 and 1823, rendered in watercolor. There's something about the stark lighting and the horse's posture that makes me think about work, about the everyday. What catches your eye about it? Curator: Immediately, I consider the animal's equipment, the heavy harness. Géricault has taken care to describe the materials that would’ve shaped the labor the horse was forced to perform. The harness is the interface between human work and the animal, right? So, I have to wonder about the socio-economic realities that would demand such labor from a horse? What class does this painting depict? Editor: That's fascinating. So you're looking beyond the image itself, at the horse's material reality as part of the working class in that era? Curator: Precisely. Romanticism often idealizes nature, but here, the emphasis on the equipment complicates any simple reading of idealized animalism. Watercolor as a medium also invites interpretation – Géricault could’ve opted for oil paint to show more vibrant colour; what do the ‘sketchy’ and potentially mass-produced qualities of watercolour on paper mean? Editor: That makes me rethink the composition entirely. It's not just a portrait of a horse; it's a record of labor relations and production! And choosing watercolor, a more accessible medium, seems deliberate now. Curator: Yes! By showing a commonplace animal that likely hauled plaster for construction, Géricault acknowledges a material connection with expanding construction, a symbol of urbanization’s increasing reliance on animal exploitation. Editor: I never considered how the medium itself comments on the message. I thought the muted color scheme captured its sad subject matter. Thanks, I’m walking away with a different understanding. Curator: Absolutely, every element – material, subject, technique – points to a deeper understanding of its world.